Lipedema symptoms

Bruises, pain, feeling of tension

With the slightest touch, bruises appear, the affected areas of the body are sensitive to touch and generally painful. A feeling of tension arises, especially in the evening, so that especially the legs not only feel heavy but are also bulging with lymph fluid.

These phenomena are caused by a vicious circle that takes place in the altered fatty tissue. The blood vessel walls are more fragile. The vessel wall becomes permeable to fluid. Lymph escapes into the surrounding tissue and can no longer be adequately removed. There is pressure and tension in the tissue, followed by inflammation, which sustains the entire pathological process. The consequences can be felt physically.

Lipedema has an impact on everyday life

Patients affected by lipedema often suffer significantly from the physical changes. Sport and a healthy diet do not lead to a change in the physical silhouette as desired. Pain and steadily increasing weight limit the range of motion. The dress question becomes a daily stress test. In the end, despair often outweighs it.

A specialist diagnosis (phlebology / lymphology / vascular surgery) brings clarity

By making a diagnosis with a specialist, other causes of weight gain such as lipodystrophy or another metabolic disease are excluded.

Imaging procedures also reveal accompanying venous insufficiency, e.g. with the help of sonography and other clinical examination methods. If you have varicose veins accompanying your lipedema, vein stripping or some other type of obliteration of the varicose veins should be performed before lipedema surgery.

The important lymphatic drainage therapy may have already been initiated through the specialist diagnosis, which was carried out in our house before the first consultation. Likewise, ideally, you are already provided with flat knit compression clothing and wear it consistently.

Lipedema checklist

If you can answer yes to several of these questions, then we recommend consulting a specialist who can clearly diagnose lipedema.

• Your legs and arms don't look like the rest of your body?
• Hands and feet are normal?
• Do you also get bruises with minor trauma?
• Do you have pain to the touch and at night?
• When standing, the legs swell disproportionately?
• In the evening you have the feeling that your legs are heavy as lead?
• Do you have pronounced dents on your thighs?
• Exercise and a healthy diet do not affect your arms and legs?
• Your weight is increasing uncontrollably even though you are disciplined?
• Your symptoms are temporally related to a hormonal change (puberty, pregnancy, menopause)?
• After a stay in the cold, your legs hardly get warm again?
• Are there female relatives who show similar symptoms?